Fact vs Opinion: a lesson in Pork and Logic

June 24, 2015

Fact vs Opinion: a lesson in Pork and Logic

Sometimes I get into arguments on the internet, and a rant appears minutes later on my facebook wall. And just for posterity, and to perhaps add a little more “KMFP flavor” or “authenticity” to it, I add it to this page. This is a rant aimed at some random chick on the interwebz who caught me on a subject that I am particularly fiesty about: Pork and Logic. Allow me to get the hell on with what I believe to be a very important lesson:

FACT VS OPINION

A fact is falsifiable, whereas an opinion is not. It’s unfortunate but I feel that I must point this out to people.

PORK AND LOGIC

To say that porcine species are inherently unhealthy for human consumption is not a statement of an opinion, it is a statement of a false fact. However, people hide behind their false facts by claiming they are “just opinions.” Further:

If I argue this fact, showing studies indicating the healthful benefits of consuming pork from a metabolically healthy animal, you cannot simply dismiss the information as my “opinion” because this isn’t a fucking opinion at all. Like geocentricists arguing for geocentricism and heliocentricists arguing for heliocentricism weren’t having a difference of opinion on the subject, either.

Noting that human species have shared the same ecological niches as these mammals for millions of years, and that suggesting the entire genus is pathogenic without substantiating evidence and only offering that you disagree because “that’s [your] opinion” is illogical— and annoying as fuck.

Are all bovine species pathogenic? Perhaps a vegan would say “yes”, but unfortunately that’s not well-founded in light of what we know about consuming beef raised in feedlots vs wild bison, now is it? Same with porcine species. Was a wild javelina-rich diet unhealthy for the indigenous people of the Southwest Americas? Are the Hadza getting sick from eating Tanzanian warthog because pork? I’ve yet to see evidence to support that.

Probably because there is none, but if there is let me know.

But I digress. The former example was evidence to support a statement of fact which is “No, porcine species are not inherently unhealthy.” You can either prove it or disprove that with evidence to the contrary, but saying “that’s [my] opinion doesn’t disprove or effectively dismiss the evidence. All it does is make you look like a) you have no way to back up your ideas and b) someone who doesn’t know the difference between fact and opinion and c) a jackass.

So next time you say something like “pigs are unhealthy, look up their biology”, don’t hide behind your false statement of fact and use “that’s just my opinion” as your shield.

PS internet chick, your supporting evidence blows.

Best,

Karen Pendergrass

Facebook Comments

by Karen Pendergrass

About me

Karen Pendergrass is an ENTP who is an enthusiast in a myriad of areas including Agricultural Sustainability, Food Politics, Applications of Bacteriotherapy, Autoimmunity, Color Theory, Hard Determinism, Social Engineering, and Rewilding.